Bobbyjay and Daisy are trapped in a family feud, powerless to stop it from exploding. Then a Porsche Targa full of live smelt brings them together, and they fake a betrothal that carries them to crazyland.

This romantic comedy introduces the world of stagehands, those blue-collar knights of chivalry, those workaholic, playaholic, unsung heroes behind the curtain.

ebook

Published
2010
by Book View Press
(first published December 31st 2009)

Community Reviews

I’d like to start this review by saying that I don’t read a lot of romance. However, when I was given the opportunity to read Fool’s Paradise, I decided to check out Jennifer Stevenson‘s take on the genre. It didn’t take me long to realize that I wasn’t reading a simple kissy novel. I soon found myself giggling at her playful use of wit and cliche to tell the story.

Fool’s Paradise begins with Bobbyjay Morton being called out to the lake from his shift at a local opera houseGenre: Romance/Comedy

I’d like to start this review by saying that I don’t read a lot of romance. However, when I was given the opportunity to read Fool’s Paradise, I decided to check out Jennifer Stevenson‘s take on the genre. It didn’t take me long to realize that I wasn’t reading a simple kissy novel. I soon found myself giggling at her playful use of wit and cliche to tell the story.

Fool’s Paradise begins with Bobbyjay Morton being called out to the lake from his shift at a local opera house to deal with a problem that may very well jeopardize his grandfather’s upcoming campaign to become union leader. As the family whipping boy, he is charged with the task of making the problem go away. However, he doesn’t count on Daisy Ditorelli turning up to find her grandfather’s beloved classic filled with smelt. When her grandfather arrives and tries to shoot the lad, Daisy steps in to save the day, telling the monarch of the Ditorelli family they are engaged. What begins as a simple lie to keep her Goomba from killing Bobbyjay, leads to numerous problems as the pair try to keep up the guise of an engaged couple. It also offers an opportunity to stop a feud that has been going for over four decades between the Mortons and the Ditorellis.

Daisy and Bobbyjay are great leads for the novel, bringing sanity and intelligence to two families filled with moronic males. The chemistry between the pair played out naturally, and I found myself cheering them on from the sidelines. I wanted them to make the finish line because they are both genuinely likable characters. I also wanted their families to realize the folly of the feud and quit being idiots. The satisfying conclusion wraps things up nicely, yet you know that the path won’t necessarily be perfect. However, as a reader and aspiring author I know that Bobbyjay and Daisy are more than a max for whatever obstacles come their way.

You can learn more about Jennifer Stevenson and her fiction by visiting her official website. You can pick up a copy of Fool’s Paradise wherever good ebooks are sold....more

FOOLS PARADISE gives us Daisy and Bobbyjay, the youngest sprigs from modern Capulet and Montague trees, in a blue-collar Jacobean comedy of feuds, follies, and getting your fingernails dirty. Set in today's Chicago world of union families, ethnic mixes and purely finding yourself, FOOLS PARADISE shows us that there are a lot of smarts, manners and good humor hiding under these blue-collar folks. It's not so easy to break free of your assigned place in the family, whether you're grandpa's littleFOOLS PARADISE gives us Daisy and Bobbyjay, the youngest sprigs from modern Capulet and Montague trees, in a blue-collar Jacobean comedy of feuds, follies, and getting your fingernails dirty. Set in today's Chicago world of union families, ethnic mixes and purely finding yourself, FOOLS PARADISE shows us that there are a lot of smarts, manners and good humor hiding under these blue-collar folks. It's not so easy to break free of your assigned place in the family, whether you're grandpa's little girl -- and chief cook and housemaid, or the youngest (and by far the most clever and well-educated) in a long line of Morton males.

Thanks to a huge prank that backfires big time, Daisy and Bobbyjay, who have known each other since they were children, end up engaged -- or Bobbyjay may just end up dead. Daisy has never really thought of Bobbyjay as anything other than a childhood friend who now gets cross-eyed at how his friend has matured, where Bobbyjay has always thought she was a darling, but would never have taken his life in his hands by trying to date the granddaughter of his uncle's mortal enemy.

Turns out they don't know jack about each other -- and the discoveries are both hilarious and thoughtful. Each step digs them in deeper, as they scheme about how to break off their engagement, even as they both privately wonder if they really want to call things off. But family tensions are leading to some ugly scenes and genuine danger. Can true love triumph? Or will Bobbyjay sink from the anchor of his father and brothers? Will Daisy break free of her assigned place in her family?

This is a fun, fast read -- I look forward to the next one! Recommended! Ebook readers, head for www.bookviewcafe.com. And it is also available in .PDF format, so an Adobe Reader will also work!...more

“Packard rolled his cigar from one side of his mouth to the other. "I ast you not to start a riot with my boys and now I hear you kicked one of my stagehands in the nuts. You got anything to say about that?" Daisy said, "Never happened.”
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